750ml offering. Urbain states this brew is made with Trappist Westvletern yeast. After a couple sips, it is somewhat familiar to some of the St. Sixtus offerings. However, I never would have made that connection easily without his description.

This brew pours amber with an off-white cap. Decent retention overall but a light swirl revives the cap and produces spotty lace that sticks to the glass.

The smell is very malty and rich almost with a touch of darker nutty aspects. A touch of herbs and belgian yeast phenols create some depth.

Tastes sweet and malty with a nutty touch. Some yeast and weedy to herbal hops faintly in the aftertaste breaks things up a bit. Some yeast and fruit is evident as it warms. Aftertaste of toffee is quite enjoyable and familiar.

This is a medium bodied brew with a modest level of carbonation. Quite malty with lots of flavor and depth to a rich sweetness to layers of malt. A very unique and enjoyable brew. (951 characters)

T - Apple/citrus shifts into caramel/cherry by the middle of the drink. Pear pushes though towards the end. The finish is floral hops and some bready yeast notes. The lightly hoppy aftertaste lingers for some time.

M - Minimal carbonation, which works well, letting the medium body become as creamy as possible.

D - Pretty decent overall and well balanced, if unremarkable. I wasn't as blown away as I have been with other De Struise brews. (674 characters)

11.2 oz. Bottle poured into my Duvel tulip. Thanks to Doug (Douglasjamjak), for yet again affording me the opportunity to sample another are De Struise brew.

Appearance: Pours a reddish brown with a small 1/4” head that quickly recedes to a cap. Decent lacing.

Smell: Hard to discern any real aroma, maybe some spice but all very mild.

Taste: Caramel is the dominant flavor I am able to pick up, some hints of spice. Basically a mild beer, in fact I can’t say “mild” enough. Not bad, it still has a nice flavor but nowhere near as deep and flavorful as any other Struise beer I’ve ever had. Just not a whole lot going on with this one.

Mouthfeel: Thin but not unpleasant, well carbonated.

Overall: Interesting brew just for the fact that it seems so ordinary when it comes from an extraordinary brewery. Once again, I’m glad I could give it a try. (868 characters)

Bottle shared at the May Santa Cruz tasting. Pours medium brown with an off-white head. Chocolate bready aromas with a spicy earthy touch and some raisiny dark fruit. Flavor is similar but with a distinct red fruit/berry note midway through the finish. There's also a rye-like element to the breadiness, reminiscent of Bruery Rugbrod. (334 characters)

The pour was probably the best part of this one as the rich, dark brown liquid poured down into the glass. A huge head of tan then rose up to a height of around two inches before settling back down into a frothy and foamy cap that stayed with it throughout the session. Only real knock here being too much head if anything. Aroma was fairly light, nice spice notes up front, hints of caramel, dark prune like fruit notes and a hint of cinnamon of all things. Carried over well in the flavor which was equally rich. Strong notes of spice up front and a smooth, mellow texture that really seemed to hit the nail on the head. Earthy and herbal with nice hints of dark fruit, I really felt it summed up the part quite well. Very drinkable and the rich, fruity profile lended itself well to being a fine sipper.

D - Easy to drink and a nice complex yet balanced flavor. I enjoyed drinking it and it was good, but nothing great. I would gladly drink it again and gladly drink a couple in a night.

Notes: Good, though not great, beer that was enjoyable, complex, and fairly balanced. The flavors didn't pop, but rather provide a nice easy drinking beer. I would gladly drink it but probably wouldn't get it due to the price. (1,103 characters)

Bottle from the Struise Yeast Store. Pours an amber brown colour with thin off white head. Some more hops in the smell than I was expecting, quite spicy too. Some mild chocolate roast it seems too, with the Belgian yeast. Smooth mouthfeel. I enjoyed this beer. (260 characters)

Ken's bottle from Struisse. A smooth light body and mouthfeel. An attractive quarter inch head. Lacey. Smooth drinker, though a bit of sourness that you will find in a brown ale. Unfiltered, a little hoppy,sugar and cinammon, good drinkability. Dry finish. (256 characters)

Pours a cloudy, red-purple amber with a very nice, thick tan had. Lace sticks the glass very well, though the retention is not as epic as some Struise beers.

Aroma is of fruity esters, some banana bread and dried, woody hops.

The flavor is solid. Very dry and hoppy-woody. The malts add very nice notes of caramel, toffee and crusty, dark toasted bread. Surprisingly not so much fruity as just dry, Maillardy and bitter. Simple, but nice. The mouthfeel is full and fluffy, with slightly harsh bubbles for a Struise beer. Lacks some of the typical DSB smoothness and finish.

Not nearly as impressive as some of Struise's other brews, but nevertheless a drinkable Belgian dark. (704 characters)

33cl bottle served in my DT tulip. Lot A Month M (May) 13 indicated on the label (I'm assuming this means best before May 2013). Pours a deep cider, almost plum color with a quarter inch, frothy white head embedded with ringlets. Nose expresses yeast and sweet, fruity esters (perhaps strawberries). Taste starts off slightly metallic, followed by dry, dark fruit (plums and prunes) and yeast. Mouthfeel is light-medium with a prickly carbonation and a semi-dry finish. All and all, a somewhat bland Belgian Dark. Decent, but not a particularly engaging or memorable example of the style. (588 characters)

Pours cloudy red with a big frothy head. Aromas of roasted malt, chocolate; hints of spice like anise. A smokiness on the finish with notes of coffee, vanilla, and a certain grape element. Feel is on the thin side for a larger beer. (287 characters)

Reviewed from my tasting notes. Served in my Uprising Chalice at Novare Res. This is a De Struise offering I've been excited to try. I rushed out the door when I saw Novare had a keg of it.

The beer is colored red and brown. It is translucent and looks hazy inside (although I don't think there is anything suspended in the beer). This makes it difficult to determine how much carbonation is rising within; it doesn't look like much, but the bubbles could be obscured. The head is large and made up of tan foam. As I drink, good lacing is left behind.

What strikes me first about the aroma are the subtle grassy hops. The malts remind me of molasses cookies. It is a touch sweet, but robust.

The beer has a good amber malty flavor. I can taste molasses and toffee. There is some bitterness in the finish. The menu listed this as a Belgian Amber, which is an interesting take on a style I consider mostly American.

Jeanne has a medium/full body an good carbonation. There is a slight watery coat left after each swallow. It has only a touch of stickiness; for the most part what remains easily slides away.

I find this beer to be very easy drinking and refreshing. No extreme flavors ensures I won't get tired of this one. Fans of Belgian beers and De Struise in particular are encouraged to try this beer. (1,310 characters)

A: The pour is a hazy dark orange color with a creamy, khaki colored head.

S: Sweet oranges and caramel maltiness (with a hint of candi sugar) on the nose with scattered hints of dark fruits. I cannot really name any of them in particular, as it's just more of a fruity character.

T: A fairly pronounced bitterness that was unexpected. Lots of oranges and particularly orange peels. A balance of malt and sugar notes and perhaps a slightly toasted flavor.

M: The body is medium with a fairly high level of carbonation like you would expect from a Belgian beer.

D: I was curious as to what this one would bring, and I did enjoy it. It seemed sort of like a Belgian take on an American Red/Amber ale. (744 characters)

On draught at upstanding establishment. Nice pour in a tulip glass, leaving plenty o' room for a large head to roost on top. Straight amber in color. I would call this a Belgian amber rather than a Belgian Dark Ale - it's not particularly dark in color or flavor. Moving on... nice malty aroma, very subtle hoppage, earthy. Nice round flavor to this - signature Struise fruityness and mild sweetness, pretty malty, with a slight earthy funk (not sour). Smooth on the palate. This is a nice drinkable ale from De Struise - not an over the top flavor assault like many of their others (which I love). Just a nice Belgian amber. (625 characters)

Nose brings some malts, slight dark Belgian malts but not a lot. Some light fruit with apple and pear, and light Belgian yeast fruit.

Taste comes with more Belgian malts, some dark but mostly light. Slight strong ale flavor with some sweetness and hint of booze. Plenty of fruit with pear, a little apple, and more Belgian yeast fruit flavors. Some bitterness too with a little mild grassy hop character. Finishes with lingering hop bitterness as well as some light sweet malts and plenty more fruit. Lighter than expected overall.

Sampled at Het Oude Schooltje; July 2010The head on this is quite firm, long lasting and it sticks quite well to the sides of the glass. The beer is a hazy, light red to amber hue. The nose on this has an interesting subtle funkiness to it; musty at first but then it moves into a light cheese like note. This also smells quite fruity, most like currants and something I want to call pink grapes.

The flavor is very lightly sweet up front, but has a firm bitterness to it that nicely balances. Other flavors of red table grapes and currants are balanced by a touch of herbal hop character. This beer is quite nice, I like that it is dry overall; this makes for an appetizing, light beer that has a touch of sweetness (that seems like it is more from fruit notes than a sugar sweetness if that makes sense). The flavor also has that touch of mustiness and funky ripe cheese. This is a very nice, complex beer and I am really digging the complexity that the little touch of open fermentation gives this beer. (1,008 characters)